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Purple Pitaya Nice Cream

Posted: August 8, 2018

Hey! It’s Lunches + Littles here, and a couple days ago I shared the picture above over on my feed and asked my audience what they thought made up this pinkish-purple, dreamy dessert. Several guessed, and the guesses varied widely - everything from blackberries, to ube, to acai, to beets. None of those were right, though a few people did guess the secret ingredient that makes this dessert pop – red-fleshed pitayas (or pink dragon fruits). Yum!

This fruit isn’t always easy to come by locally, so my friends over at Melissa’s Produce sent me some of this kind of exotic fruit, and I was so excited to make something nutritious and beautiful with these pitayas. This was also a really fun treat for the kids. (You can also buy dragon fruit puree in the frozen section at Whole Foods).

My daughter is currently obsessed with alllll things princess, unicorn, purple and pink. So, this was a dream for her to see, and then eat! And, my boys were equally impressed. All three of my babes (ages 2, 4 and 5) ate this up, and then asked for more. All the while, I of course loved that they were eating a treat that was made up of just 4 ingredients and included a new-to-them fruit. The combo of bananas and pitaya boasts a high fiber count, among other benefits - all wins in my book. And seriously, the color… I just can’t get enough of it.

Now it is true, summer may be coming to a close (how is that even possible?), but that doesn’t mean that we need to stop enjoying treats like this.

This Purple Pitaya Nice Cream isn’t just easy to make and ridiculously pretty too, it is also easily made dairy-free (depending on your milk choice: see below). So grab a few pitayas (and fancy sprinkles if you desire/just for fun!) and let's do this! The super simple recipe is below.

For more colorful, fun and healthy recipes be sure to check out @lunchesandlittles on Instagram!

-Joy

Purple Pitaya Nice Cream

Description

Purple Pitaya (Dragon Fruit) Nice Cream

Ingredients

2

red-fleshed pitayas (flesh only, or sub two 3.5oz smoothie packs)

3

Frozen Bananas (peeled)

1⁄2 cup

milk of choice (or half and half*)

juice from 1 small lime

Notes

*half and half offers a creamier consistency

**OPTIONAL: top with Fancy Sprinkles!

Instructions

In a high-powered blender (Blendtec or Vitamix), add all of your ingredients. Pulse or blend until smooth and creamy. If you need to thicken things up a bit, you can add more frozen banana.

Transfer mixture to an ice-cream maker and churn according to the manufactures instructions. *If you do not have an ice-cream maker: simply transfer mixture from your blender to a freezer-safe container and freeze. Every hour check on your mixture and mix with a fork or spoon.

Freeze 6 hours or until completely firm. Then, when ready to eat, remove from freezer and let container sit out for approximately 5 minutes to soften. Then, scoop and serve.